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MANAMA, Bahrain – Tens of thousands of protesters chanting "Bahrain is not for sale"jammed a major highway Friday to denounce proposals for closerunity between the unrest-torn Gulf kingdom and neighboring SaudiArabia. The rally's large turnout — demonstrators stretched for morethan five kilometers (three miles) along a main highway —underscored the strong backlash to efforts by Bahrain's rulers tointegrate key policies such as defense and foreign affairs withtheir powerful Saudi neighbor. Riyadh has aided Bahrain's embattled Sunni monarchy with troops andmoney during the island nation's 15-month uprising. Leaders for Bahrain's majority Shiites call the unity proposal asellout of the country's independence and an effort to give Saudisecurity forces a stronger hand in crackdowns in the strategicisland kingdom, which is home to the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet. Gulf Arab leaders earlier this week delayed any decisions onseeking greater unity among members of the six-nation GulfCooperation Council. Some members, such as the United ArabEmirates, also have raised questions about whether closer GCCcooperation would give too much power to Saudi Arabia. Crowds streaming along a highway outside Bahrain's capital Manamaon Friday chanted slogans, such as "No unity, no unity," and"Bahrain is not for sale." Bahrain has been hit by near daily protests and clashes since theShiite-led uprising began in February 2011 inspired by revolts inother Arab countries. Opposition groups seek a greater Shiitepolitical voice in the Sunni-ruled nations. At least 50 people havedied in the unrest in Bahrain, where a Saudi-led Gulf force came tothe aid of the ruling dynasty last year. There was no immediate reports of violence from Friday's march. Bahrain's leaders have blamed Shiite power Iran for encouraging theuprising, although there has been no clear evidence to support thecharges. Still, many Iranians have expressed sympathy withBahrain's Shiites and Iranian officials have sharply criticized theSaudi-led military intervention in Bahrain. In Tehran, a government-backed march Friday decried the proposedunity pact. The protest leader, cleric Kazem Sedighi, said theproposed Saudi-Bahraini accord is an "ominous conspiracy" aimed atthe "annexation" of Bahrain by Saudi Arabia, the main regionalrival for Iran. "Bahrain and regional nations, as well as the Muslim world and theIranian nation will never accept the conspiracy," Sedighi said. Iranian state television said similar rallies took place in othercities and towns in Iran, with thousands participating. Many nationalist and hard-line conservatives in Iran considerBahrain, which gained independence from Britain in 1971, as arightful part of the Iran — as it was before it fell underBritish colonial rule. Until the Western-backed Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi was toppled bythe 1979 Islamic Revolution, Iran kept two empty seats in itsparliament for representatives from "Bahrain province.". We are high quality suppliers, our products such as Adult Disposable Pants , Reusable Incontinence Briefs for oversee buyer. To know more, please visits Washable Incontinence Pants.
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